Hood latch and operating means therefor



Nov. 4, 1958 D. P. HYNES v 2,859,062

v noon LATCH AND OPERATING MEANS THEREFOR v Filed may 26, 1954 Y 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Nov. 4, 1958 D. P. H'YNES 2,859,062

HOOD LATCH AND OPERATING MEANS THEREFOR Filed May 26, 1954 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 I i mo 5 I)? V4??? for 2?; re .Pfl nes HOOD LATCH AND OPERATING MEANS THEREFOR Dibrell P. Hynes, Evanston, Ill., assignor to Chicago Forging and Manufacturing Company, Chicago, 11]., a corporation of Delaware Application May'26, 1954, Serial No. 432,432

1 Claim. (Cl. 292-11) I having a particular operating means forthe latch element thereof.

Another purpose is to provide a hood latch assembly having an operating means for the latch element thereof, which operating means may be effective to operate also a safety latch associated with the hood l'atchs assembly. Another purpose is to provide a hood latch assembly having an operating means for the latch element thereof wherein said operating means may function also as a safety latch. Other purposes will appear from time to time in the course of the specification and claim.

I illustrate my invention more or less diagrammatically in the accompanying drawings, wherein:

Fig. l is a partial side elevation of a portion of an automobile with parts broken away and parts in vertical section;

Fig. 2 is a side elevation on an enlarged scale, in partial cross-section, and illustrating the hood latch shown in the left portion of Fig. l; and

Fig. 3 is a section on the line 3-3 of Fig. 2.

Like parts are indicated by like symbols throughout the specification and drawings. 7

Referring to the drawings, 1 generally indicates the hood of an automobile. 2 indicates a hood closure, preferably of the type opening at or hinged at the rear. Whereas the details of hinging and support are not of themselves part of the present invention, it will be understood that the device may be employed with a hood hinged, for example, at the point indicated at 3 in Figure 1. v Referring now particularly to Figure 2 of the drawings, the numeral indicates a part of the closure member 2. To the part 5 may be secured, as by the nut and bolt connections 6, 7, a plate 10. The plate, generally indicated at 10, may, as best seen in Figure 3, be formed in a general overall U shape. Thus the plate 10 may have a pair of spaced, generally triangular-shaped side walls 10a, 10b and a connecting bottom wall 10c. One side edge of the wall 10a, and its counterpart edge on the wall 10b, may be outwardly bent in opposite directions, as at 11, 12 to form flanges adapted to receive the connections 6, 7. As will be noted from a view of Figures 2 and 3, the flanges 11, 12 lie in a generally inclined plane, parallel to the member 5 on the hood closure 2; thus the arrangement of parts is such that when the plate 10 is secured to the hood closure 2, the bottom wall 100 of the plate member 10 is positioned generally in a'horizontal plane. i

ICC

Referring now particularly to Figure 3, the numeral 15 generally indicates a portion of the hood shown gen; erally at 1 in Figure 1. A generally U-shaped plate member 18 carries the outwardly directed flanges 18a, 18b which are in turn apertured to receive the connecting elements 16, 17. The plate member 18 has a generally horizontal center portion 18c which is apertured as at 19 to permit the passage therethrough of a portion 20 of a keeper plunger 21. In the arrangement of the parts shown in the drawings herein, the plate member 18 is arranged above the member 15 and the horizontal portion 18c is therefore spaced upwardly from the plate member 15. The portion 20 of the keeper plunger element 21 is threaded and carries a nut 22 which may be brought up against the lower portion of the horizontal wall 18c. The portion 20 also carries a nut 23 threaded thereon which may be brought up against the opposite face of the horizontal portion 18c, thus adjustably locking the keeper plunger member 21, in the desired posi tion, on the plate member 18. a

The keeper 21 has a stem portion 25 extending, as the parts are shown in the drawings, upwardly from the plate 18. The stem 25 has a conic enlargement 26 arranged thereon at a point intermediate the end of the stem 25 and the threaded portion 20. The enlargement 26 has the inwardly, upwardly conic portion 26a and the generally cylindrical portion 27. The stem has a generallyrounded conic tip 28 at its end.

Referring again to the plate member 10, and particu: larly to the horizontal wall portion 100, it will be observed that the wall is apertured as at30, the aperture 30, as best seen in Figures 2 and 3, being generally elongated in a direction generally parallel with that of the longitudinal axis of the closure member 2. A keeper guide member 31 is associated with the aperture 30. The keeper guide member 31 as best seen in Figures 2 and 3, is generally cup-shaped and extends, as the parts are shown in the drawings, upwardly above the horizontal wall 10c in the plate member 10. The guide 31 has a generally outwardly directed annular flange portion 32 which may be secured to the bottom face of the hori zontal wall 10c, as by the spot-welds generally indicated at 33. Thus the generally cylindrical wall, indicated at 31a, of the keeper guiding cup 31 extends, from the flange 32, through and upwardly from the aperture 30. The wall 31a, has a pair of inwardly offset portion's 31b and 31c. The cup 31 is hollow, having the generally elongated opening 34 at its upper end. The wall of the cup 31 is slotted adjacent the plate wall 10c, as at 31d, and the slot 31d is open toward the left-hand or forward portion of the guide 31, as the parts are shown in the drawings.

Secured to the walls 10a, 10b, and extending therebetween, is the pin 50, which has surrounding it the spring member 51, having one of its ends extending downwardly, as the parts are shown in the drawings, and seating within a notch 52 formed in an inwardly bent flange 53 on the wall 10a. The opposite end of the spring 51 may likewise extend downwardly from the shaft 50 and may seat within a notch 54 in a latch bolt member generally indicated at 60 in Figure 3. The latchbolt may be generally U-shaped, having a horizontal portion 61 and parallel arm portions 62, 63 extending perpendicularly therefrom. The arms or lever portions 62, 63 may be apertured as at 64, 65 in order to permit the passage therethrough of securing members 66, 67. It will be realized that the apertures 64, 65 are of suflicient diameter to permit the latch member 60 to be pivoted on the securing members 66, 67 which may be in the form of loose rivets. The latch member 60 includes a tongue 70 on the horizontal portion 61 and extending outwardly therefrom toward the axis of the aperture 30 in the horizontal wall 100 oftheplate 10. As best seen in Figure 2, the tongue 70 extends outwardly from the opposite edge of the horizontal portion 61 from that in which the groove 54 is located and that thus the spring 51 tends to urge the latch 60 and the tongue 70 inwardly toward the axis of the aperture 30. The latch blade portion or tongue 70 has its outer edge chamfered as at 70a to permit the conic enlargement 26 to force the latch 60 out of latching position as the enlargement passes through the aperture 30. r

Referring specifically to Figure 3, the numeral 8% generally indicates a latch-operating lever. The lever 80 is pivoted tothe plate 10, as generally shown at 81, and may, as shown in the drawings, be pivoted to the outside of said plate about an extended portion of the securing-member 67 about which the latch 60 is pivoted. The lever 80 may include an inwardly bent lateral ear portion 82, which may extend through a generally arcuate slot 83 in thewall 10a. It will be realized that the slot 83 serves as a limit at its opposite edges for the travel of the operating lever 80. The lever 80 may include a manually-operable grip element 85 at its outward end.

The ear 82, as will be best seen in Figure 3, extends inwardly through the slot 83 a sufficient distance to pass alongside the arm 63 of the latch 60. The arm 63 has an outwardly extending abutment 63a against which the ear 82 is in continuous contact, as best seen in Figure 2. Thus, as will be seen in Figure 2, movement of the lever 80 to the left, as the parts are shown in Figure 2, causes the ear 82 to move the arm portion 63 of the latch 60 and continuous motion to the left of the lever 80 is effective to urge the latch 60 and its tongue 70 outwardly away from the axis of the aperture 30. It will be noted that the car 82 is thus in contact with the latch 60 at a point substantially spaced from its pivot points 66, 67, the arrangement of the parts being such that movement of the latch lever 80 to the full extent of its travel to the left, that is to the point at which the ear 82 contacts the end of the slot 83, is sufficient to move the tongue 70 a substantial distance away from the axis of the aperture 30.

As best seen in Figure 2, the pivot point axis 66, 67

of the latch 60 is in general vertical alignment with the tongue 70 when the tongue is in latching position. Thus it will be seen that forces tending to move the keeper 21 outwardly through the aperture 30 are exerted generally in alignment with the pivot axis or point 56, 67.

I For a more detailed explanation of the above-described structure the reader is referred to my co-pending application, Serial No. 408,817, filed February 8, 1954, for Hood Latch.

The operating or actuating lever 80 may have secured to an inner edge thereof, and spaced beyond the inner portion 82 from the pivot 81, a second inner portion or laterally-extending flange 91, which may extend in a direction' laterally opposite from that of the car 82. Thus, as the operating lever 80 is actuated, the portion 91 will ride parallel with and along a lower portion of the outer face of the wall 10a. A notch or recess 92 may be cut in the edge of the wall 10a, and a yielding means, such as the spring 93, may be secured at one end in the notch 92 and at the other in an appropriate opening in the flange 91. Thus the spring 93 is effective to urge the operatinglever 80 into inoperative position so far as the main latch is concerned, but simultaneously into latching position so far as the safety latch is concerned.

The operating lever 80 may carry adjacent its outer end a safety latch or hook portion 100, extending inwardly from an edge'of the lever 80, as shown best in Figure 2. The hood portion may carry adjacent its outer or forward edge, as the parts are shown in the drawings, a'similar cooperating hook portion 101. As an example, I illustrate, particularly in Figure 2, a hood portion 15 which may have a forward wall portion 102 which in turn may have a relatively large aperture 103, the wall portion 102 being inwardly bent about the aperture as at 104, the aperture 103 being substantially larger in diameter than a cross-sectional area of the safety lock portion 100. The inner or upper edge 100a of the latch 100 is recessed as at 100b, the recess 10% being dimensioned to receive the bent wall portion 104 when the safety latch and hood are engaged. The safety latch 100 has an upwardly, inwardly curved outer edge 110 which permits the operating lever 80 and safety latch'100to be forced outwardly as the hood closure 2 is directed downwardly towards the hood 1 and the edge 110 is thereby caused to ride along opposed portions or elements of the hood 1. As will be best seen in Figure 2, an unintentional release of the tongue 70 from engagement 26 on the keeper would permit thehood closure 2 to rise upwardly away from the hood 1 until the safety latch or hook 160 was brought into contact with the opposed hook portion 101 on the element 15 attached to the hood at which point the safety latch 100 would be effective to retain the hood closure in position on the hoodl. As best seen in Figure 2, the yielding means 93 is effective to hold the safety latch 100 in vertical alignment with the cooperating hook portion 101 which it directly underlies.

Whereas I have described and claimed an operative device, I wish it to be understood that this showing is to be taken in an illustrative or diagrammatic sense. There are many modifications of the invention that will fall within the scope of the invention that will be appparent to those skilled in the art. The scope of the invention, therefore, should be limited only by the scope of the hereinafter appended claim.

The use and operation of my device are as follows:

When the closure member 2 is brought downwardly toward closed position, the latch plate 10 and its associated parts are caused to approach the keeper 21. While the latch member is shown as attached to the closure 2 and the keeper element as attached to the hood portion 1. it will be understood that the parts could be reversed without departure from the nature and scope of my invention. Since the aperture 30 is elongated fore and aft of the automobile, the aperture 30 in the latch plate 10 is caused to surround the stem 25 as the closure 2 approaches the hood 1. As the stern penetrates the keeper guiding cup 31, it is directed, when the hood closure 2 may not be in precise alignment, by the inwardly offset foreand-aft wall portions 31b, 31c toward the opening 34 and thus the conic enlargement 26, when it reaches the aperture 30, will be generally centered in relation thereto because of the action of the wall portion 31c against the stem 25 of the keeper. As the conic portion 26 enters the aperture 30 it is caused to impinge against the chamfered inner edge 70a of the tongue 70 on the latch .60, causing it to move against the spring 51 out of the path of the conic enlargement 26. As the hood closure 2 continues to approach the hood 1, the conic enlargement 26 is caused to further enter the cup guide 31, and as the cylindrical portion 27 passes the tongue 70 on the latch or latch bolt 60, the pressure thereagainst is released and the spring 51 causes the tongue 70 to move toward the axis of the aperture 30 and therefore causes it to move into latching position against the keeper 21 and immediately underlying, as the parts are shown in the drawings, the enlargement 26. As the hood closure Zapproaches the hood v1, the inwardly, upwardly inclined edge 110 of the safety latch portion 100 is caused to impinge against opposing elements on the hood 1, thus causing the operating lever and safety latch portion to move forwardly or to the left, as the parts are shown in the drawings, until the safety latch portion 100 passes beyond the hook element 101 and is aligned with the aperture 103, at which point the safety latch 100 is permitted to snap, as urged by the spring 93, toward latching position as shown in Figure 2. As seen from the relationship of the parts illustrated in Figure 2, the safety latch 100 is permitted to enter the aperture 103 before the conic portion 26 of the keeper contacts the latch 60. While the forward movement of the lever 80 caused by impingement of the safety latch edge portion 110 against portions of the hood 1, also causes movement of the latch out of latching position, the latch 60 is returned to latching position by the spring 51 when the safety latch 100 enters the aperture 103 and the lever arm is caused to return to the position shown in Figure 2 by the cooperating action of the spring 93.

When the operator desires to open the hood closure 2, he may reach through the grill, as illustrated in the lefthand portion of Figure l, and grasp the handle portion 85 on the operating lever 80, drawing it toward him, or to the left as the parts are shown in the drawings. Since the ear 82 on the lever 80 is in contact with the abutment 63a on the latch 60, movement of the lever 80 to the left causes the tongue to travel outwardly from the cup 31 or away from the axis of the aperture 30 and out of alignment with the enlargement 26. Since the safety latch 100 may be integral with the lever the outward movement of the lever 80 thus described, causes a simultaneous movement of the safety latch out of alignment with the hook portion 101 and thus a single movement of the lever 80 by the operator causes a simultaneous disengagement of the safety latch 100 and the main latch 60.

I claim:

In a hood latch assembly for motor vehicles and the like, having a hood member and a closure member, an apertured latch plate secured to one of said members, a keeper adapted to enter said aperture and secured to the other of said members, a latch bolt pivoted to said plate, yielding means secured to said plate and said latch bolt ,6. and positioned to urge said latch bolt toward latching engagement with said keeper, a combination latch boltoperating and safety-latch member, said last named member comprising an elongated, substantially rectilinear lever, pivoted at one end to said plate coaxially with said latch bolt pivot, an integral abutment portion on said lever adjacent its point of pivot and positioned for actuating contact with said latch bolt in response to movement of said lever about its pivot in one direction, an integral safety hook portion on said lever adjacent its opposite end, a manually operable portion at the said opposite end of said lever adjacent to said safety hook portion, an integral flange extending laterally from said lever adjacent said actuating abutment, said safety hook portion, manual handle portion, actuating abutment and flange being positioned on the same side of said lever and a second yielding means secured at one end to said plate and at its opposite end to said flange, said second yielding means extending from said flange and lever on the same side thereof as said safety hook portion, handle portion and actuating abutment portion.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 

